BIRMINGHAM, Alabama - Andy Summerlin has battled through injuries and transfers for six years since he graduated from Apopka High School in Orlando, Fla., but has finally found a place to call home at Samford.

And through his trials and tribulations, the senior quarterback has found the light at the end of the tunnel and is directing one of Samford's best teams ever as the No. 25 Bulldogs prepare for Saturday's 2 p.m. home game against No. 13 Appalachian State.

Samford's Andy Summerlin looks to pass against West Alabama earlier this season.Associated Press

Summerlin has had two labrum injuries on his right (throwing) shoulder that has required three surgeries. Both came in practices. One, in high school, caused him to miss the next two years of play. After his second year (but only year on the field) at Coffeyville (Kan.) Community College, he signed with Memphis, but things weren't rosy there.

He again hurt his shoulder in practice, taking a direct hit from a defensive end when quarterbacks were live. Usually, they are protected in practice from hits. Summerlin redshirted in 2010 and played some last year for the Tigers, but chose to transfer after a coaching change.

With little time, and with Samford head coach Pat Sullivan looking for a quarterback, the two were a natural fit. There was a mutual connection with one of Summerlin's junior college coaches, Dickie Rolls, who Sullivan has known since he coached at TCU. Rolls made the first connection to Sullivan.

Summerlin, 24, could have given up. He's listed as a fifth-year senior, but is six years removed from high school. He delayed full-time enrollment by a semester into junior college after high school to rehab his shoulder. Junior college was a blessing for Summerlin, he said, but there were tough times at Memphis as the team won just three games in two years.

Still, he graduated with a degree in sports administration and is pursuing his MBA at Samford. Since then, he's thrown for 1,428 yards with six touchdowns in Samford's pursuit for a Southern Conference title and FCS playoff berth. The Bulldogs are 5-1, 3-1 in SoCon play.

"I'd be lying to say there weren't times where I questioned the path of my life and what I wanted to do, but my family's always been really supportive of me," Summerlin said. "I've always felt like I had something to accomplish."

A 4.0 student, Summerlin certainly didn't go to junior college for his grades, but it did help him get noticed by Memphis and other FBS schools. But after missing one year to injury, adjusting to a new style of offense after that year and starting two games (the first and last) in a 2-10 season last fall, it was time to move on where he felt he'd have a better opportunity to succeed.

"Though it wasn't the greatest experience (at Memphis), I still took something from it," Summerlin said. "Fortunately, it led me here, and thus far I've enjoyed it here."

With no experienced quarterbacks returning at Samford, Summerlin jumped into the competition this spring and won the job. He's emerged as a leader and developed a close bond with backup quarterback Ben Neill and the rest of his teammates, Sullivan said.

"When he came here, he didn't come in with the attitude of big-time, the job's mine, he came in with the idea that he was going to earn the job," Sullivan said. "I don't know of anybody who worked harder in the offseason and in the weight room, running, the whole bit. He's over here in the office at 9:30 at night watching film when the coaches are getting ready to go home."

Summerlin bounced back from his worst performance of the year in a 35-16 loss at Georgia Southern two weeks ago with his best in a 38-7 win over The Citadel last week. He hit 72 percent of his passes for 320 yards and a touchdown - an 82-yard pass to Riley Hawkins that Sullivan called "probably the biggest play we've had this year and one of the biggest since we've been here."

Bouncing back from one rough game pales in comparison to three shoulder surgeries and three different schools in five years. Now, Summerlin lives with his older brother Kyle, an accountant at Ernst & Young, and is enjoying life. He attacked the challenge after the loss to GSU head on, just like he has his other obstacles in life.

"Adversity teaches you a lot about who you are, who you need to be and who you want to be," Summerlin said. "It's been a long run. Three different places in five years is a lot. Thankfully I was fortunate enough to be around some great people and some great teammates, and my family has been a strong backbone for me."